Idaho adds requirements for animal entry in response to U.S….

The Idaho State Department of Agriculture instated additional state entry requirements for animals on Wednesday following detections of New World screwworm — a flesh eating parasite — in Texas and New Mexico.

The parasite, first confirmed in the U.S. on June 3, would pose a serious threat to Idaho’s livestock industry, should it spread to the state. The screwworm’s larvae burrow into, and feed on, the living tissue of warm-blooded animals, with the potential to cause severe wounds, pain and bleeding.

The agriculture department’s Wednesday administrative order requires a Certificate of Veterinary Inspection granted, at most, five days before arrival for all warm-blooded animals entering Idaho from states with New World screwworm infestations.

For animals arriving from a designated screwworm-infested zone, the state agriculture department has mandated that a copy of the movement permit from the state-of-origin allowing the animal to depart must be presented. As of Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has only declared screwworm-infested zones in southern Texas.

State officials are also encouraging Idahoans to refrain from taking their pets to states with New World screwworm cases to help mitigate the spread of the disease.